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Toronto needs to see more than stats from Lind

Toronto needs to see more than stats from Lind

TORONTO -- Adam Lind has enjoyed a hot month with the bat for Triple-A Las Vegas, but the overall numbers are going to be just one factor in how quickly he gets back to the Major Leagues.

Lind, who was optioned to the Minors on May 17, was given a list of things that needed to be improved upon before he could return to Toronto, according to manager John Farrell.

The club wanted to see an improvement in Lind's ability to attack left-handed pitching, and a lack of conditioning also appears to have played a large role in his demotion.

"I think there was a need to regain the bat speed that he has shown previous, and I think, at times, showed that it had been less than while he was here," Farrell said. "Whether that was because of overall physical conditioning, we saw some limitations to his range at first base.

"Those were things that were outlined clearly to him, and it wasn't going to be a batting average that got him back here."

Farrell was then asked to clarify whether Lind was out of shape during the first six weeks of the season in Toronto.

"There were some things that took away from his range, and we felt like it reduced the bat speed," the second-year manager responded.

Lind began the season as the Blue Jays' cleanup hitter but never quite found his stride. The native of Indiana hit just .186 with three homers and 11 RBIs in 34 games before being sent to Triple-A.

While with the 51s, Lind appears to have turned things around by posting a .405 average with three home runs and 17 RBIs in 21 games. Those numbers can be deceiving, though, considering they occurred in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Lind has battled back problems for the past year, but according to Farrell, that didn't play a role in his overall fitness level this season.

"He had been cleared for all of that because he had been doing his core stabilization religiously," Farrell said. "That was never an issue."